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Hi All,

We're headed to Peru. We have a blank slate for 10 days. I'm just starting my research.
Machu Pichu is obviously on the list.

Anything else a wildlife, mountain loving mama would enjoy?

Any itinerary suggestions?

2 teenagers in tow.

THANKS,
Tigerlilly

What time of year? Now? The time of year will make all the difference in the answers.

Time of year Indeed! February is in the rainy season. Not that it's pouring with rain all the time, it's just that there is a fair amount of precipitation, and if it's dry, there is a good chance that it's cloudy so that any mountain tops that may be around are invisible. All in all, in the wet season virtually nobody climbs in any of the glaciated ranges, and there are much less people on the hiking trails. The Inca trail is in fact closed in February.

Nevertheless, I fully understand that you want to see Machu Picchu, it is indeed a remarkable place. I visited in June, and enjoyed a sunny day, the sort that you need to take those pictures that appear in the travel brochures. In February, you're at the mercy of the weather. You may well be lucky and have a sunny day, but if it's overcast, I bet that it will be less scenic, and if it's raining, well, then I wouldn't even want to go there.

VIsiting Machu Picchu means you'll be flying to Cuzco, which in itself is an interesting city, with lots of history. And not all that far away are several mountain ranges, notably the Cordillera Vilcanota, my favorite range in the south. You could hike the Ausangate circuit - but in February you'll get wet. Combining Machu Picchu with the Ausangate circuit would take up most if not all of your 10 days, but perhaps you can still squeeze in a visit to Lake Titicaca.

If you're looking for bigger peaks to climb, the volcanoes around Arequipa can be ascended all year round, in principle, though the success rate is much lower in February than a few months later, because even if it's not raining or snowing high on the mountain, ascending in the clouds does not exactly provide the motivation to keep going if you're already struggling with the thin air. Considering that Misti is 5822 m high, you need to be acclimatized before having a go at it. Starting your trip at Cuzco, then a visit to Machu Picchu followed by a couple of days at Lake Titicaca helps, though probably you'll be struggling at best, and your headache may force you to descend.

If you're in Arequipa but the weather isn't right for Misti, or you don't feel acclimatized enough for it, I recommend a trip to Colca Canyon instead, including a couple of nights in the area, so that you have enough time to hike down to the canyon floor.

With more time I would also recommend visiting the Cordillera Blanca, but with just 10 days it seems a bit silly to spend several days traveling in Peru on buses and planes, which rules out any itinerary with both Machu Picchu and the Cordillera Blanca.

Saludos, Rob

P.S. Assuming you haven't already read them, I posted a series about Peru that you may find useful. It starts around Arequipa and moves on to Cuzco. Part 4 includes a visit to Machu Picchu. After that, the story continues in the Cordillera Blanca, so you can skip that.

Tiger,
My advice is to split Machu Picchu in to two visits, afternoon and then a sunrise the next morning. I was so surprised at the amount of people that spent weeks and big dollars to get there and then run around the place in an hour or two. You'll want to get signed up for Huayna Picchu as only so many are allowed and you can also do the Sun Gate. Unless you want to have your schedule crammed it's tough to get a whole lot more in, in 10 days. States to Lima, day there, travel to Cusco, day or two there, train to Aquas Calientes, night there, maybe a stop in the Urubamba valley and then back to Cuscu, then Lima. To do Machu Picchu right you'll need most of those 10 days in my opinion. Both Lima and Cusco have so much to offer you'll be better off saving something for next time.

Although it is expensive the Inkaterra in Agua Calientes is one of the nicer hotels (in the world) we've stayed at and we wish we would have stayed two nights.

I really wanted to get into the Amazon but that and the Cordillera Blanca will have to wait until next time.

Lake Titicaca is just an interesting bus ride (tour actually) away from Cusco and Puerto Maldonado is just a short plane hop away, but 10 days doesn't give you much time if you want to really see Machu Picchu. You might want to check out Adventures Within Reach (http://www.adventureswithinreach.com/); they can arrange various short tours and are good and reasonable.

Hi All,

Thank you so much for the suggestions.

We will be there the 2nd week of April.

-TL

2nd week of April is the transition between the wet and dry seasons. Mountaineering around Cuzco isn't the best then, but trekking on the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu should be good. In addition to the other activities mentioned above, rafting should be good then. The Rio Urubamba is in the area and is a must.

I would recommend against flying to Cusco from Lima, the altitude change will make two or three days rather unenjoyable. Next time I'll try the bus.

Edit for clarity: the bus takes about 20 hours of travel time, so you'll gain altitude more gradually (routes via Nazca or Arequipa, so most of the gain in the second half of the journey). This should help with acclimating. If it works, you can actually enjoy the sights in Cusco. Plus, you'll see more of the country. The coastal deserts are pretty interesting, very different from anything I'd seen before.

nartreb wrote:I would recommend against flying to Cusco from Lima, the altitude change will make two or three days rather unenjoyable. Next time I'll try the bus.

I was supposed to fly from Lima to Puno, but arrived too late in Lima to make the flight. So...we flew to Cusco and took a bus to Puno. It killed a day travelling, but everybody felt fine. Sounds to me like your problem was the altitude, not the means of transportation, but then it could have been lack of decent ventilation in the plane.

We took a tourist bus when we went back to Cusco from Puno; it stopped at a bunch of interesting places along the way (Raqchi, Abra la Raya, etc.) - definitely the way to go.

favorite hotels? places to eat? things to do?

You'll want to stay loaded on Coco Leaves while you're there. Supposed to help with everything.

In Cusco, we stayed at a place called El Balcon. Really artsy and cool. There's a lot of Art in and around Cusco. Some Inca ruins to daytrip while you adjust to the altitude. Oh yeah, and what Tonka said upthread. A night in Aguas Calientes even if it is a sh#thole. Echoing what everyone else said, 10 days for a country like that is tight, you can easily blow a day on a connection.

ETA: You won't find a lot of wildlife in a country like that. They eat everything.

Believe me, I wish it could be longer than 10 days, but I'm restricted by school vacation schedules, etc.

No wildlife? gah...

No wildlife? gah...

Peru is full of wildlife. Maybe there isn't as much around Cuzco (I haven't been), but much of the country is teeming with wildlife.

Just a few of the wildlife pics I took on my last trip:









(Flamingos by the thousands):



I don't know if you would consider things like wild horses as wildlife, but they have a lot of those as well:



Even the domestic animals were interesting:



The above photos were all on the Altiplano, but in the Amazon side of the country, there are many more animals.

Safety issues?